


clouds (just out of grasp)

by discombobulation



Series: the color of blood (finding freedom) [1]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Accidental Baby Acquisition, Connor (Detroit: Become Human) Whump, Connor Deserves Happiness, Good Parent Hank Anderson, Gratuitous use of italics, Identity Issues, M/M, Nicknames, Parent Connor (Detroit: Become Human), Post-Pacifist Best Ending (Detroit: Become Human), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Hank Anderson, Protective Markus (Detroit: Become Human), the baby being a child, this baby can hold so much trauma
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-20
Updated: 2020-10-20
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:02:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,214
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27004774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/discombobulation/pseuds/discombobulation
Summary: After the revolution, Connor ran. Guilt and shame weighed heavy on the ex-Hunter, and the distrust of his fellow androids seared into his skin.8 years after his sudden departure, he heard of a string of violent crimes and missing asylum-seeking androids, some of whom that he had pointed to Jericho. Although he had long shed his identity as Connor, the Deviant Hunter, he found that he must take up the title once more to find the deviants that are missing, with the help of those who he left behind.
Relationships: Connor/Markus (Detroit: Become Human), Hank Anderson & Connor, Hank Anderson & Connor & Original Character(s), Hank Anderson & Connor & Sumo, Josh & Markus & North & Simon (Detroit: Become Human)
Series: the color of blood (finding freedom) [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1979621
Comments: 13
Kudos: 45





	clouds (just out of grasp)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bros my sleep schedule is FUCKED lmaoooo so here's this mess

**_September 21, 2046 ; 7:33:44PM_ **

**_Crane, Montana_ **

Dust blew into his face unforgivingly, scratching harshly against the small amount of skin showing. Despite the heat, he pushed his face further into the large, tattered black scarf around his neck, an equally worn cowboy hat tipped low into his face, long curly hair peeking out from underneath. The wind was unforgiving, doing nothing to relieve the blistering heat of the Great Plains. It has been weeks since the last rain, and the farmlands were clearly showing it, irrigation sprinklers working tirelessly day and night to keep the plants alive. There weren't any androids out in the weather, the upcoming windstorm proving to be a challenge for even the most durable farming android. He didn't mind; it gave him time to wonder, dedicating more power to think rather than to scan for anyone that might try to run him off.

Times have been tough on everyone, but especially those in the Plains he found. The androids before the revolution, while not welcomed directly into society. were still treated fairly by their owners. Much of their income relied on the androids being able to go out and help with planting and harvest season, as well as general upkeep of the towns dotted across the plains, mostly cut off from any conglomerates. He found that Montana was his favorite place to be in, during the warmer seasons. While the weather and animals were unpredictable, the communities had generally welcomed androids into society. Of course, there were still those violent crimes that he was much more used to dealing with in the cities, but the amount was nearly infinitesimal. It let him relax, even for a little bit. And watching those androids, accepted into their communities nearly unanimously, was exciting for him. The risk of global warming made the state's agriculture a rapidly shifting scale, and the work that androids could be used for was appreciated, even by the more bigoted residents. He sighed as the sun rested on the horizon. He could feel the chill in the air already coming on, despite it being late September. Harvest was coming to a stop soon, and he found himself hoping that the night wouldn't bring a terrible cold.

He heard the light ring of a message being sent to him, and he pulled it up in his vision. It was a notice, from one of his contacts on the border of Montana and North Dakota.

_Your assistance is required, Cloud._

He smiled at the nickname, sending a quick affirmation back to Sinopa. She was an older Blackfoot women from northwestern Montana, a traveler by choice, and deeply spiritual. When she had asked him for a name, when they met all those years ago, he told her that he had yet to find one. She had smiled at him, and told him that his troubles are ever fleeting like the clouds, always out of his grasp. Koko, the YK500 with her, had latched onto the nickname with glee, holding on to him and asking him to hold her as high as the clouds.

Now, androids and humans all across his network simply know him as Cloud.

He checked the mental route in his mind and sighed, turning north and making his way to Sidney. She was waiting for him in-between Williston and Fairview, and he was currently west of Crane, heading to the river to check on the android camp he established there. He opened a communication channel, apologizing to Kaiya, the leader of the encampment, saying that he had an urgent situation with and that his visit will be postponed. 

_The Seven Sisters Compound survived a year without you, a few more weeks likely won't do any harm._ She said, amusement clear in her voice. _Go be the world's Markus_. 

He rolled his eyes at the comparison, exasperation and embarrassment rolling off him in waves. It has become a running joke within his contacts, saying that while Detroit had Markus, the States had Cloud. He knew why they made the jokes, steely resentment hidden behind their words.

While Jericho marched for peace in Detroit, everyone else marched to their death in camps. 

_I currently do not have contacts outside of North and Central America_ , he reminded. _I am nothing more than a mutual contact for various compounds, Kaiya_. He found that he enjoyed the banter with his contacts, finding that even he felt the stabbing loneliness that he had chosen when he fled. Meeting the various leaders, both old and new, had been refreshing to his mind, relieving him of stress that he didn't realize he was carrying. Kaiya was one of the newer leaders, a long deviated TG300 model. The teenaged android had been in rough shape when Cloud had first met her, but her work ethic and unshakeable morals had quickly given her an advantage in being able to maintain the compound. Although she was slightly caustic and tended to be quite bitter, Cloud had developed a fondness for the android, empathizing with the bitterness.

 _You have done more for the world than Markus had done for us. At least you had enough sense to contact us_ , she stated, closing the channel with a brief goodbye. He winced, knowing that she likely was going to berate them when they meet-up over his lack of self-esteem. Despite his appearance being much older, TG300s have been around far longer than most models, being the introduction to child models and prototyping for the later YK500 models.

He looked up at the sky, his internal clock long turned off. He found that he enjoyed the mystery, trying to predict the time with visual clues. The first few stars shone in the night-sky, most factories abandoned. Oil had long dried up in the area, and when they left they took the pollution and smell with them. The sound of crickets and mosquitos buzzed around him, and he purposefully made noise with each step. He hated the silence that came with how he moved, and made a point to make noise, to take up space and exist. He's told it's a very human thing to do, but he just wanted to shake his programming, the codes that make him move in near silence. Unconsciously, his hand rose, touching the side of his face. He had removed his LED when he left Detroit, letting H-- burning it in a backyard, not really destroying it, but just for the symbolism of it all.

Lately, that's all his life seemed to be.

He twitched, shrugging off the negative feelings that he can feel creeping on him. It wasn't often that he engaged in his feelings of stress and fear, but there are times when it sneaks up on him. It's better, now that he has a semi-stable communication with others and he disconnected from active news updates weeks after the Revolution, but sometimes they couldn't be helped. Maybe Sinopa could tell that he's struggling. He doesn't doubt the human; she vaguely reminds him of the strange android he met in Jericho, what with her ability to tell him things that he has hidden or doesn't even know about himself.

Trying to shake off the feelings, he connected to the playlist he made shortly after he left Jericho, playing a mix of jazz, heavy metal, and surprisingly, underground rap. When he initially made the playlist, it was meant to remind him of the things that he was leaving behind, but now it's something that he holds fondly. Many androids he had met have added to the playlist, especially Kaiya, and he finds that it makes the nights easier and the pain less apparent. It even became a game for the younger androids, trying to find the most obscure music, held to android standards. 

He sighed as he walked on, music humming in his ears. His feelings can wait. His services are required.

_**September 23, 2046 ; 9:52:15AM** _

_**Trenton, North Dakota** _

The small reservation town he found himself was bleak, practically abandoned by humans in the face of global warming and draught. There were still farms and families that occupied some areas, but the town was mostly deserted and dried up, people leaving for better opportunities and availability. It made travelling through the area easier for both androids and humans that need to disappear, allowing for him or his contacts to establish relationships and assistance with them.

He walked up to their usual meeting point, a lone gas pump on the main road, and a burned concrete building. His sensors picked up several pairs of footsteps, one nearly running and the other two following at a much slower pace. He turned around, opening his arms to catch the running YK500 that had leapt at him, letting out a yell of joy.

"Cloud! I'm so happy to see you!" Koko yelled into his chest, squeezing him and holding onto the back of his coat. He wrapped his arms around the child, pulling her into a more secure hold as she nuzzled into his chest. "You've been gone too long! Mama had said that we would see you, but sometimes it still takes months!"

Cloud chuckled, nodding at Sinopa and the small android following her cautiously, hand holding tightly onto the woman's shoulder. "It is good to see you, Koko. You as well, Sinopa."

"Well met, Cloud," Sinopa said, coming to a stop a few feet from him, likely for the androids comfort more than any hesitance from her. "I am glad that you were so close to us. Our friend here has had quite the journey, and your help would be beneficial." Cloud nodded, adjusting his grip on Koko to get a better look at the android. They were another YK500, seemingly of south Asian descent. He resisted the urging from his HUD to scan the child. Their eyes were black, with a repaired slash across her face revealing her white chassis underneath, their clothes equally as destroyed, and their black hair was plaited tightly to her head. He leaned down to set Koko down, ignoring the girl's pout as he crouched down in front of the YK500, trying to be as none threatening as possible.

"Hello there," he said softly, the androids head turning to him, "my name is Cloud. May I have yours?"

The android tilted their head slightly, their voice being distinctly feminine with a raspy quality that he knew to associate with heat damage to the vocal module. "My name is Angel."

Cloud smiled. "That name is very fitting, you are very beautiful. Are your eyes functionable?" She shrugged her shoulders.

"A little. I can't see very far away anymore, though." Despite her obvious shyness, the more Cloud talked with her the more relaxed she seemed. Cloud glanced up at Sinopa, who nodded and gently pushed Angel in Koko's direction, who perked up at the attention.

"Play with Koko for a bit, my dear. I must talk with Cloud." Angel nodded, holding a hand out that Koko eagerly took, guiding her to a large tree with a tire-swing hanging off a large branch.

Cloud stood, following Sinopa to be closer to the building, keeping the girls in his vision. "She seems very sweet."

Sinopa hummed. "She is, once she is able to relax, the poor thing."

"I'm surprised you called for my assistance. Child models are more of your specialty."

"She needs a protector," Sinopa said, "not a teacher. While a sad child, she is very intelligent despite being a YK500. She does not need knowledge or patience, she needs someone to rely on." She side-eyed Cloud, a strange look on her face. "Just as you are, she is lost. I wonder if you two will be able to help each other."

Cloud was already shaking his head. "I am not nearly stable enough to care for a child, no matter if they are intelligent or not. I think that there is more that you want to tell me."

"That would be correct, my dear." Sinopa smiled, a grim little thing that looked more like a grimace. "I know that you refuse to acknowledge the news, so it was merely convenient that we found Angel while tracking you."

Dread crept up his spine. "What news is so important that you were tracking me for?"

The smile turned into a full grimace, a rare apology in the woman's eyes. "I'm afraid that Detroit and Jericho are once again the target of national news. There seems to be a string of violent, unsolved murders of androids. They all seem to be seeking asylum within Jericho, but are slaughtered before they reach them."

"Why are you telling me this?" He's so tired, he knew what she was going to say but he dreaded hearing it anyways, trying to ignore the part of him that began planning a route to Detroit.

She turned to fully face him, grimace falling away to a determined frown. "You must return to Detroit, to Jericho, and save our people. You have the resources and connections that Jericho does not, and if Jericho falls, everything does. Everything you have done for androids since the Revolution would be for naught. Angel is a bonus for you, as that is where she wishes to go and find life."

He raised an eyebrow, expression incredulous. "You want me to escort a YK500, an android that requires food and warmth, on a 1300 mile trek when winter is coming, to solve violent crimes where androids just like her are being slaughtered?"

Sinopa's expression didn't change, and he wilted internally. "Yes. This is how it must be. I place my faith in you, as does the strings of fate. And it is not like there aren't camps along the way to Jericho, and this will allow you to scout for information, through yourself or others." She grabbed his shoulders, pulling him down to her height to make eye contact with him. "Cloud, you must become Connor once more and save your kind, just as you did in the Revolution when it seemed like the future was bleak. You have the support of the States, and of those in Central America and Canada."

He sighed, nodding his head. "I can't decline when you put this much faith in me," Connor said, a soft, sad smile on his face.

Sinopa nodded, releasing his shoulders and turning back to the girls, Koko staring at them and obviously whispering to Angel. "Come," she said, making her way to the girls. "You can rest tonight at our camp, and I will prepare you to travel with a YK500." Cloud could do nothing but follow the elderly woman, fondness creeping onto his sad smile.

**_September 23, 2046 ; 10:23:06PM_ **

**_Trenton, North Dakota_ **

Cloud sat on the ground around the fire that Sinopa had prepared, Angel's head resting in his lap. When Sinopa had told them that they were heading back to camp, Angel had latched onto his hand with a shy but determined expression on her face, and Cloud couldn't bring himself to refuse. Angel had beamed at him, and quietly began retelling all the games that Koko has shown and played with her, and how she didn't know that there were so many games that you could play without having any toys. He couldn't help but be fond of the girl, her natural charisma coming through the more comfortable she became around him.

Now he sat, the girl curled up and resting on his lap, Koko resting on Sinopa, who is wearing a satisfied smirk.

'Shut up,' he mouthed at her, winking and she laughed quietly, her eyes twinkling. They sat in silence, Cloud going into low-power mode, gazing at the stars. He wasn't sure what Sinopa was doing, but the silence of the night was unusually peaceful, and he found that he trusted that Sinopa would keep them safe and undetected through the night. The last thing he heard before he slipped into stand-by, charger humming at the nape of his neck, was a soft goodnight and the steady crackling of fire.

Angel still was holding onto his hand.

_**September 24, 2046 ; 7:03:51AM** _

_**Trenton, North Dakota** _

Angel was holding tightly to Cloud's hand as they waved goodbye to Sinopa and Koko, the pair heading west while they were heading to Detroit. Sinopa had enough grace to give him a supply of food and fire-starters to keep Angel in good health as they travelled. They stayed where they stood, watching as Sinopa and Koko soon became specks in the distance.

Cloud sighed and crouched down, smiling at Angel. "We are going to be travelling for a very long time," he informed her, "and it is very important that you are alert and aware. I can carry you anytime you are tired, and we will stop at night after we scout through the area. This time of year is especially dangerous, as many animals will do something drastic to eat, even if they normally avoid androids, not to mention that there are still humans that hunt down androids for fun. There are also many android encampments along our path, and we will be stopping for at least a full day when we come across one, depending on our supplies and health." He hoped that he wasn't overwhelming her, but it was critical for him to make sure that she was aware of the danger they could be in while travelling. It was a long journey, and one that becomes more dangerous the closer they get to Detroit and humans that were more affected by the Revolution compared to the rest of the country.

To his relief, Angel nodded determinedly. "I promise that I'll be safe, Cloud. Is it okay if I hold your hand as we walk?"

"Of course," Cloud said. "And I have contacted the Missouri Encampment that is just outside of Minot, and they have the resources to provide us with a vehicle for the rest of the way. However, that is still a 43 hour walk with limited stops."

Angel just smiled up at him. "I trust you to keep me safe Cloud, so I'm not worried!"

There was a pit in his chest, almost like when humans say that their hearts hurt, and he smiled shakily at Angel, squeezing her hand carefully. Guilt, from his actions before the Revolution, was rearing its head and reminding Cloud of his sins. He doesn't deserve this little girl's trust, but he swore that he would keep her safe. His throat was choked as he spoke. "Thank you. Let's get started, yeah?"

Angel nodded once more, her smile nearly blinding, a deep contrast compared to the destroyed synthetic skin over her eyes. As they started walking, the wind pleasant and the sun just coming over the horizon, Cloud wondered just how much Sinopa knew. How much she knew about how he needed this trust, the affirmations that he wasn't the literal android devil anymore. He knew it was silly, but this little girl's trust in him was already shaking the truths that he believed about himself and his place in the world, where eight years of near constant loneliness didn't.

He wondered if this was rA9 saying that he was forgiven.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and Kudos are what keep me going <3  
> my tumblr is cunieform-e


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